United States Credit

The United States must pay the United Nations "at least" $250 million by the end of December to avoid losing its vote in the General Assembly, said Joseph Connor, the world body's undersecretary-general for management. Connor said that nearly $1.7 billion owed by Washington--a number that has been disputed--has left the world body without capital.

The United States must pay the United Nations "at least" $250 million by the end of December to avoid losing its vote in the General Assembly, said Joseph Connor, the world body's undersecretary-general for management. Connor said that nearly $1.7 billion owed by Washington--a number that has been disputed--has left the world body without capital.

Swiss banker Bradley Birkenfeld would do just about anything for the wealthy Americans who entrusted him with millions of dollars they wanted to hide from the Internal Revenue Service. He'd help them set up phony companies to conceal their deposits. He'd give them credit cards to access their hidden cash. On one occasion, he converted a U.S. client's money into diamonds, then smuggled the gems across the Atlantic in a toothpaste tube. Those actions, detailed by Birkenfeld in court documents, were part of a coordinated -- and illegal -- effort by his employer at the time, Swiss banking giant UBS, to help wealthy U.S. clients evade taxes.

Visa, MasterCard Charges Soar: Driven by explosive growth in Asia and the United States, credit card charge volume jumped 26% in the first quarter, the card associations said. Visa International said cardholders worldwide charged $172.2 billion in the first three months of the year, compared to $137 billion for the same period of 1994. MasterCard's worldwide charge volume rose to $102.5 billion from $80.4 billion last year. Visa charges totaled $21.

Republicans quickly seized on S&P's decision to downgrade its outlook on the United States' credit to "negative," injecting the news into the debate over federal spending. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) called the decision "a wake-up call" that supports the party's case for including further budget cuts as part of any move to raise the nation's debt limit. "Today’s announcement makes clear that the debt limit increase proposed by the Obama Administration must be accompanied by meaningful fiscal reforms that immediately reduce federal spending and stop our nation from digging itself further into debt," he said in a statement.

Last week's sour news about unemployment prompted calls for the government to do more to boost the economy. Unfortunately, history shows that there's no magic wand Washington can wave to put people quickly back to work. What it can do is calm some of the anxieties investors have about the future — in particular, the nervousness about the government's fiscal health. The news on that front isn't very good either. Washington has hit the statutory limit on borrowing, and Moody's Investor Services warned Thursday that it might downgrade the United States' credit rating if lawmakers can't agree soon to raise the debt ceiling.

NEW YORK -- The United States' credit rating and status as the world's reserve country would be threatened if the federal government doesn't resolve the "fiscal cliff" before automatic spending cuts and tax hikes kick in at the end of the year, Goldman Sachs Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein said Monday. Though Blankfein said he was optimistic that political leaders would reach a short-term deal after the November election and perhaps reach a compromise by the middle of next year, a solution was far from certain.

As she dialed the telephone and asked for Robert, she hoped this call would be different. "Hello, this is Mrs. Pierce," she said soberly, identifying herself as a bill collector. "I'm calling in regard to the $14,000 owed on these credit cards." It was a quick conversation: "Contact my attorney. I'm filing for bankruptcy," Robert said and abruptly hung up. Mrs. Pierce, whose real name is Cora Smith, wasn't surprised.

Lance Armstrong finished in 80th place in the second stage of the Tour de France on Monday and again had to fend off questions about drugs and cycling. Belgium's Marc Wauters won the stage and took the overall lead. Armstrong, bidding for a third consecutive title, crossed the line in the main pack, 22 seconds behind Wauters. The Texan dropped from third to 11th place in the overall standings but still remains a favorite to win his sport's most grueling event.

Global warming has been Al Gore's signature issue since he portrayed it as a planetary threat in his 1992 book, "Earth in the Balance." However, in his speech Thursday at the Democratic convention, the presidential candidate devoted merely a sentence to the supposedly dire phenomenon. That was smart politics. Eyes glaze over when leaders promise to rein in something so big.